Three Samsung workers injured in second serious acid leak at chip plant

Korean agency Yonhap News is reporting that there's been a second major leak of hydrofluoric acid at Samsung's main chip factory in the city of Hwaseong. Three workers are said to have been injured, with no word yet on how badly. Only three months have passed since the last such accident at the plant, which proved to be fatal and which got Samsung a nominal $1,000 fine as well as a telling-off from police investigators -- but which evidently didn't lead to sufficient safety improvements.

Update: Samsung has been in touch to say that the acid leak wasn't in gas form, as Yonhap (and we) initially reported, and that the injured workers were contractors hired by Samsung rather than staff:

At approximately 11:30 a.m. on May 2, three external contract workers were partially exposed to diluted hydrofluoric acid at Samsung's semiconductor manufacturing facility in Hwaseong, Korea. The workers received immediate first aid attention on site and were admitted to hospital for further examination. This occurred while the workers were upgrading parts of an existing facility in line with Ministry of Employment and Labor requirements. Samsung has reported the incident to the appropriate local authorities and is fully cooperating with investigations. We take the health and safety of workers very seriously and are committed to addressing any issues regarding the well-being of those working in our facilities.